Bitcoin May Already Be Entering Crypto Winter, Researchers Warn
Bitcoin’s latest slide has left merchants squinting at charts and asking the identical blunt query: correction or crash? Prices have tumbled sharply, however some market watchers nonetheless see this as a deep pullback inside an extended uptrend. Others warn the info factors to one thing colder.
Price Decline And Hard Numbers
According to XWIN Research’s CryptoQuant analysis, Bitcoin has fallen about 46% from a peak close to $126,000 and now trades round $67,900 after 5 straight months of losses.
The Fear & Greed Index sits at 14 — a studying labeled Extreme Fear. Reports be aware that internet realized losses not too long ago hit over $13 billion, a stage that matched the worst stretches of the 2022 stoop.
In 2024, roughly $10 billion of inflows helped raise market cap. Then in 2025, greater than $300 billion flowed in whereas the general market worth shrank. That odd mixture of heavy inflows and falling market cap suggests promoting stress is larger than contemporary shopping for.
How Rising Prices Are Masking a Quiet Shift in Bitcoin’s Structure
“The base state of affairs is that Bitcoin could already be coming into winter, with larger costs and stronger construction delaying recognition.” – By @xwinfinance
Read extra
https://t.co/7soxNoBhqi pic.twitter.com/fEsSXpAmuK
— CryptoQuant.com (@cryptoquant_com) February 11, 2026
Capital Flows Versus Price Action
Based on experiences, the capital move numbers are essentially the most awkward reality for bulls. Money moved in, however worth fell. Who was promoting into that demand? Large holders, paper merchants, or complicated derivatives desks might need taken income or hedged positions.
The knowledge alone doesn’t title the vendor, however the sample is a pink flag. On-chain measures additionally reveal shrinking realized positive aspects whilst costs remained far above prior bear-era ranges. That tends to weaken the inner energy of the market over time.
Sentiment And Historical Echoes
Some merchants level to a quirk of reminiscence: high nominal costs make ache really feel milder. People don’t wish to relive the chaos of 2022. Reports say the launch of spot ETFs and deeper institutional entry have modified the market’s plumbing, and that offers many confidence.
Yet sentiment readings at excessive worry usually present up close to capitulation factors. It’s value remembering that in 2022 realized losses peaked about 5 months earlier than the market backside, which implies huge losses can precede a ultimate low by a protracted stretch.
Technical Patterns And The Bigger Picture
Bitcoin posted 4 consecutive dropping months and a 41% decline throughout that stretch — a streak final seen throughout 2018 quite than 2022. That sample issues as a result of comparable sequences have led to prolonged downturns prior to now.
Bitcoin At A Crossroads As XWIN Flags Early Signs Of Crypto Winter
For XWIN Research, the message is easy: worth alone doesn’t outline the cycle. What issues is who’s shopping for, who’s promoting, and whether or not demand can take up provide with out market worth shrinking.
Right now, that stability seems to be strained. Until inflows start translating into sustained market cap development and realized losses cool meaningfully, the agency believes the market ought to be handled with warning quite than optimism. Winter could not have totally arrived, however primarily based on the info, the temperature is clearly dropping.
Featured picture from Unsplash, chart from TradingView

